Right as Rain
by b'shert
Summary: An extension of Chapter 50 in IUW, set after the fight over moving out. Stef repairs the damaged cassette after Callie confides in her and Lena that it broke. In the process, she is a listening ear for her daughter who grapples with complicated feelings from Jude wanting to see their Dad—and what it means for their relationship with Moms.


**Author Note:** The idea for an extension was seeded by **allycallie**, then finessed with **theypreferthetermpeople**. Thank you!

To recap, Callie receives recordings Colleen made of herself reading stories—a birthday present to Callie when she turned five. Jealous that his sister won't let him listen, Jude antagonizes her and unintentionally wrecks one of the cassettes. This story takes place after Callie is comfortable enough to bring the broken tape to her Moms and share with them what has happened.

Enjoy! ~b'shert

* * *

**Right as Rain **

Mug in hand, Stef treaded softly up the stairs. Although she and Lena ran a tight ship during the week, they allowed the kids to sleep in and wake of their own accord on weekends so they were well rested. As long as everyone made it down for brunch, they were more than happy to have that time for themselves—which, as parents, was elusive. They'd stay in bed reading the paper, or chat about a topic that required undivided attention. Other times, they didn't talk at all, simply enjoying each other's company. If they preferred solitude, Stef would go start the coffee, putter around downstairs, or try and catch up on documentation. This routine had formed when the kids were quite young but they'd kept it up for nearly a decade, finding that it served as a reset—energizing them so they could tackle the tasks in the week ahead of them as a team.

From the landing, Stef peeked in on the boys' room. Her heart warmed when she saw that her youngest had climbed in with Jesus. The two of them had really taken to each other and she found it sweet that Jesus never complained at the invasion of space and privacy. In fact, they'd been begging for bunk beds, unaware their grandparents had already ordered one as one of their adoption presents. At first, she and Lena had declined. Callie and Jude's beds were nearly brand new. They worried Brandon would be jealous, though as eldest, he'd had his pick between a smaller room of his own or a larger one that was shared, and he had picked the former. Stef also understood there was a very real possibility of losing her voice from repeatedly reminding the younger two not to jump off the top bunk, not to mention the risk of broken limbs. Over time, their resolve had been worn down with the pair's insistence that stacked beds would mean more space to play and make it easier to keep their room tidy.

There was a moment of panic in finding Callie's bed empty before she remembered their daughter was in their room. Sleeping with a lanky teen had been far from restful and the entire reason she had gotten up earlier than she would've liked. Despite putting Callie on Lena's side, her wife and daughter had switched places at some point, leaving her vulnerable to jabs as Callie tossed and turned. When she lost her share of the comforter, Stef gave up, deciding she would catch the sunrise as a consolation prize. With the house free from distractions, she sat down with coffee to assess the damaged cassette Callie had brought them the night before. It looked intimidating but she easily found the spot where the tape had snapped and was certain it could be returned to playable condition.

Cracking open the door to the master bedroom, Stef smiled at the sight of their daughter nestled up to Lena. Callie was sprawled across the bed, the blanket balled up at her feet. A sleepy pout visible from behind a curtain of hair suggested the lights were out. Vowing they needed a larger bed, she crept over to her wife. "Morning, babe," she whispered, leaning in to steal a kiss. Lena was dozing. "Are you sleeping in with Callie?" To avoid any noise from the ceramic hitting the side table, she set the mug on a stack of magazines on the floor.

"Shh. She's right beside you," she said when Lena gave her a blank expression and began to get up. She did not want to wake their light sleeper if it could be helped.

Coming to, Lena looked over her shoulder. "I'll try to," she said softly. She wouldn't be able to move without disturbing Callie.

As if on cue, the girl began to stir. They held a collective breath as they waited to see if she'd settle, cringing when Callie called out for her. In her haste to make it to the other side of the bed, Stef bumped the mug. Coffee spilled over the magazines, causing her to swear under her breath at hopes of a quiet morning dashed. Fistfuls of Kleenex did little to contain the mess and eventually Lena extricated herself from Callie to take over.

Stef crouched down by her daughter, who was now mid-stretch. "I'm right here, baby…_shhh_." She was horrified at the drool stain on her pillow; those sheets had just been washed!

"It morning yet?" Callie asked groggily.

Hoping warmth might help in getting their girl back to sleep, Stef tucked the blanket up and over Callie's shoulders. "It is, but it's early, my love. Far too early for anyone to start their day. Try to get some more rest," she said softly, hoping that was all it'd take as Callie went quiet. A few minutes passed before restlessness set in again.

"Too _hottttt_," her daughter complained as she tamped down the comforter.

"Okay, okay. Not the end of the world," Stef soothed, working quickly to return the covers to how they were before. The whine told her Callie was still tired; if some coddling was needed to get her another half hour of rest, it'd be all worth it. "There. Back the way you like. Now hush, close your eyes."

Placated, another period of silence went by before their daughter piped up again. "Momma?"

"Hmm?" Though outwardly patient, Stef was exasperated and in disbelief at Callie's alertness—not to mention her stubborn inclination to fight sleep. She would never understand where her children got their energy. Callie had sought her and Lena out past midnight. By the time she had fallen asleep in their bed, it'd been pushing two o' clock. Callie had slept less than a five hour stretch—much less than the nine hours a night she and Lena endeavoured for their kids.

"You started your day." It sounded more like an accusation than a comment.

"I did," Stef admitted, trying to keep engagement minimal. It was hard with bright eyes staring back at her. Feeling a question brewing, she refrained from drawing it out of her, instead making space for Callie to initiate on her own.

Their daughter frowned. "…how come?" No matter how early it was when she got up, Stef usually was too. Even on weekends.

Needing to contemplate her answer, Stef eased herself in beside Callie, leaning against the headboard. Callie curled up to her, looking at her expectantly. The prospect of alone time fading, Stef couldn't help but reflect on how she'd envisioned spending her time that morning: reading the paper before embarking on a list of to-dos, which included working on the broken tape. More and more it felt like that wasn't to be, however, and she'd be stuck entertaining Callie while Lena slept in. Because she could see Callie's face and it wasn't the look of someone who was tired at all.

Knowing how Callie often assumed responsibility for things out of her control, she didn't have the heart to tell her about being crowded in bed. "I need time just for me in the morning," she said eventually, settling on a kinder truth that wouldn't feed into the anxiety. She ran her fingers through Callie's hair. They'd come a long way—the three of them. Callie was getting better about talking to them.

"But, how come?" Callie asked, confused. Mom was always so cheerful she'd never imagined she wanted to be alone.

"Well…because sometimes I have to think about or work on things that are concentrate on when there's a lot of action around. You all have a lot of energy—every last one of you." Callie's limited insight was humorous. Their daughter was an introverted child who needed a lot of time to recharge as well. "Carving out that time grounds me for the rest of the day."

"Oh. Okay," Callie said, satisfied enough to drop the subject. Yawning, she inched closer towards Stef. She didn't remember much from last night once they'd got upstairs, only that they'd talked about her Mom a bit.

"Now. I'm planning on heading back downstairs. Are you going to be able to lie here quietly with your Mama, or do you need me to tuck you into your own bed?" It was still early for Lena, and she wasn't particularly interested in having a grouchy, sleep-deprived spouse today. On the other hand, Mariana slept like the dead til at least nine, so she hoped Callie would pick the latter.

Her daughter scowled, evidently unhappy with her choices. "What're you gonna do downstairs?"

"I am _going_ to get me some more _coffee_ and wait for the paper," Stef replied. "Boring old people stuff. You wouldn't be interested." Aware of exactly where this discussion would end up, she was unable to hide her exasperation. There was a reason she hadn't invited Callie to join her.

"And eat the Oreo pop tarts you hid from Mama?" Callie said helpfully. They always did that when it was the two of them: eat the hidden junk breakfasts Lena wouldn't allow at normal breakfast.

"**_SHHH_**!"

"_Stef_!" Lena scolded, looking over her shoulder.

"Tattletale," Stef pouted as her sweet child proceeded to laugh in her face. "I'm not sharing, then." She would have them all to herself.

Callie went ashen. "Mom! No fair!" Realizing she had assumed she'd be allowed out of bed early, she flashed big, hopeful eyes. "Please can I come? I want to wait for the paper with you. And have coffee, too."

Stef suppressed her amusement as she regarded Callie with skepticism. "I'm not sure... You going to be able to be quiet?" She rolled her eyes at the enthusiastic agreement. _Yeah right_.

"Mhm! And I'll have just a little coffee with a lot of milk," Callie offered, knowing how Moms felt about caffeine. She always stole a sip whenever Stef wasn't looking, anyway.

"Hm. Good answer."

"So...I can come down?" Callie asked tentatively. She wanted Froot Loops, too, if Mama hadn't thrown it all out.

Stef pretended to think. "Only if you take World and Commentary," she teased, referring to Callie's least favourite parts of the Union-Tribune.

"I want the comics though!" Callie protested, incredulous by the suggestion. She always got the comics. And on Sundays, those were in colour. "But, _I'm_ the kid!"

Stef snorted, laughing out loud as she tousled her daughter's hair. Her heart sang as Callie beamed at her, onto the fact she was poking fun.

"Yeah. You're the kid, kid." She didn't think the day would come where she would hear that from Callie.

* * *

Stef felt a twinge of guilt as she stole a glance at Callie. Her daughter had wanted to hang out and instead, she'd stuck her with the comics and demanded silence. When really, she should be making the most of their time together. Considering Callie was in her teens, it was a miracle she enjoyed being around them. If lucky, she and Lena might get a couple more years of that from her.

The scene was sweet, though. Callie had the paper propped up in her arms, looking grown up with the espresso mug beside her. Watching her perk up after a couple pop tarts, she figured Callie had been angling to get up because she needed something in her stomach but wasn't able to communicate that. It was one example of the dichotomy with their daughter, testament to the way she was wise beyond her years in some respects while a late bloomer in others.

"Hey, Cal?" she began, struck with an idea. "You want to look at your tape with me, see what's going on with it?"

Callie paused as she deliberated over the invitation. She did, but also didn't want to be there if their efforts didn't work out. There was a reason she'd handed the cassette over to Moms. "Um…no thank you."

Stef frowned at the answer, which didn't sound very confident. "You sure? I've already checked it out…I think there's a reasonable chance it can be fixed," she tried again, feeling like a push was required. She watched her daughter grapple with her anxiety before relenting.

"Mm. Maybe I can just watch?"

"Sure thing." Stef got up to retrieve the cassette from a kitchen cupboard, careful not to crush the plastic as she tucked it under her arm. It was in a Ziploc, with an air pocket to cushion the tangled mess of delicate tape. Remembering the cassette player, she walked past Callie and out the door with a quick be right back. In the garage, she took her time finding what she needed, which served another purpose: giving Callie a chance to change her mind and leave if she had to.

Upon returning, she chuckled at the sight of the box of Froot Loops and an empty cereal bowl. She could've sworn this child's legs were hollow.

"I know it looks bad," she empathized as she laid out the scotch tape, scissors, and pencil. Callie had her head cradled in her hands, discouraged. "I really do think we have a solid shot at repairing it. But we won't know until we try," Stef said, remaining positive. Asking for help was new territory for her daughter, and this subject especially would've taken a lot of courage since it concerned an item that held so much meaning. She had to make sure she handled this right. So that more and more, Callie would see her and Lena as people she could rely on.

She got to work right away winding the tape onto the reel with the pencil, Callie looking over her shoulder. The process was tedious; any creases had to be straightened out to ensure it fed in flat without folding onto itself.

"Okay. See what's happened here?" Stef said when she got to the tear, hoping an explanation would take the edge off her daughter's anxiety. With the scissors, she pointed out the ends that had been stretched before they gave way to tension. Those would have to be trimmed before being joined to make a neat seam.

Uncomfortable at the thought of the tape being cut on purpose, Callie chewed on her bottom lip. Was that the part Mom had called her Callie Cat, or when she said she was proud of her for starting school? How much was recorded into that section?

"I'll take off as little as possible," Stef clarified at Callie's reluctance. "It's important that we do it so that part won't get tangled when it plays, though."

She waited until she had Callie's permission before going ahead with what she had to do. Nodding at the dispenser, she checked that the ends were correctly aligned while Callie was distracted by the task set out for her. Once the edges were joined and smoothed over, she offered the girl a turn, thinking it might help to have some agency over fixing her cassette.

Callie shook her head; she needed her Mom to do this.

As Stef resumed coiling the ribbon, a question that had been weighing on her ever since Jude had confessed to destroying his sister's tape came to the forefront. She and Lena had been waiting for Callie to tell them on her own timeline. It hurt that it had taken this long.

"You know you can tell us anything, right?" Stef began, trying to avoid letting on that she'd taken the earlier lack of disclosure personally. It was hard to, though. That Callie hadn't approached them sooner spoke volumes about her trust in them. "It hurts to know that something so special to you was broken, especially after you'd waited so long to get it back. I'm sorry you had to go this whole time without it and really wish you'd come to us right away." Learning the truth about what had happened had been a punch to the gut. She couldn't imagine how awful that had to have been for Callie to have her Mom's voice ripped away again.

"It's okay. It's not your fault."

"Thanks, honey." Callie's forgiving nature was nothing new, but still tugged at her heartstrings. "But I don't know about that…Mama and I came down on you so hard when we should've tried harder to find out more about the situation. We let you down there." Neither had given Callie the space to tell them anything that night. At the time, they'd been so shocked and frustrated that she had pushed her brother, unaware that the both of them had lied. While she and Lena had suspected something significant had taken place between the kids given the level of upset and distress, it had been easier to react to their behaviour without delving into the specifics of what led to the altercation. The cassette being wrecked had never entered their minds.

The girl shrugged. She remembered that fight pretty clearly. Moms had separated her and Jude to make them talk. But she'd lashed out when it was her turn because her feelings had been hurt. "Don't feel bad. You guys did try but I wasn't ready."

"What is it that keeps you from coming to us?" Stef finally blurted out, unable to help herself. She had to find out how they could've handled things differently to create a climate where their daughter would feel safe opening up to them. She needed to know how much residual fear and uncertainty remained, worrying this was the start of a loop back to where they'd come from: Callie keeping things from them. It hadn't been that long since that habit had been left behind.

Not sure what to say, Callie was quiet at first. It was easy to tell that Stef felt bad about it but her reasoning had little to do with her or Mama. "I didn't want Jude to be in trouble," she said eventually before continuing. "I didn't want to get my hopes up, either. Like, I mean, it blows not having it work. But it'd suck more if I thought it could be fixed and couldn't be," she said, referring to the cassette.

Stef nodded. Callie had mentioned that before but it didn't answer everything for her. "Do you think, there was maybe a part of you that didn't want to be let down by us? Maybe you were you afraid we wouldn't help." Truthfully, there was a small part of her that was frustrated. They had reminded Callie many, many times of the importance of open and honest communication. Reaching a snag, she stopped to tease it apart, grateful to avoid eye contact for the moment. She was pushing it—risking a complete shutdown by asking outright.

"Both, I guess? It's not that I didn't think you weren't gonna help. I just…didn't want to jinx it, you know? In case you were too busy. Or if...if you weren't nice about it, like maybe it's not as important to you as it is to me." Callie replied, faltering as she strung the explanation together. _She sounded like an idiot_. "Cause I like you and Mama. A lot. I don't want to see you different," she admitted, glancing warily at the woman she considered her mother now.

Stef kept her gaze down as she swallowed the lump in her throat. What Callie was saying made perfect sense. Unfamiliar with the concept of having people she and Jude could turn to, trust was still a work in progress. Callie was hesitant to push them in ways she thought might change her perception of them. It wasn't that she didn't test them—she did plenty of that—but she wanted to avoid taking it too far, to avoid courting disappointment in the new relationship. "Mama and I won't ever be too busy to be there for you, or be mean about what you need."

"I know. It's just hard sometimes, to remember things are different here, is all."

Stef set down the pencil and tape before facing Callie. "I bet. It's hard to change the way we think about things, and we ask a lot of that from you." Cradling her daughter's cheeks between her palms, she kissed her forehead. "I'm sorry. I get impatient, honey. I want us to get to the point where you and Jude feel comfortable coming to us without stressing about all the what-ifs. Because you're safe to tell us anything. We're family. We help each other out. And I'll remind you every day until it becomes easier to remember." Her voice cracked. "I can't guarantee we'll always have a solution or say the right thing...but we sure as hell will try, that I can promise. Please don't forget that."

"Yeah, I know. I'm really sorry," Callie whispered, guilty. Her worries always seemed to override logic and she felt bad for hurting Mom. Latching her arms around her mother, she soaked up the loving and security she needed right now. She'd seriously hit the jackpot for best foster parents with Stef and Lena.

"No, no...don't be sorry," Stef reassured. She cupped her daughter's chin for emphasis. "Don't be sorry." The last thing she'd wanted to do was to shame her for ways of thinking that had been shaped to protect herself from getting hurt while in foster care.

She tucked a flyaway behind Callie's ear. "What started this whole thing, anyway?" she asked, curious for the reason. She listened patiently as Callie relayed the events leading up to the blow up between her and her brother. How she'd been counting on privacy as she listened to her tape in the den—like they had asked of her so Jude wouldn't be hurt that she wasn't ready to share yet.

"I—I said that he had to leave my Mom alone cause he had his already," Callie admitted sheepishly after describing how she'd lost it when the tape jammed.

It'd been one betrayal on top of another. She hadn't expected her brother to be so entitled about hearing their Mom's voice especially since he'd asked about going back to their Dad at the end of his sentence. It didn't seem like those two things fit together. Her gaze flitted up before she let it fall again. "He took it really bad. He doesn't like it when I shout at him."

Stef had to smile at the girl's observation. "You don't like it when Mama or I raise our voices with you, either," she reminded with slight amusement.

Callie shrugged, emotional all of a sudden. She regretted hurting his feelings, but Jude had hurt her, too. On top of everything, he'd lied and gotten her in trouble. "Sorry," she whispered, remembering how angry they'd been with her for the words she'd used.

"Hey, look at me. Chin up," Stef said, concerned by what seemed to be a resurgence of her daughter's fear. "You have nothing to be sorry about, sweetheart. You and Jude have made things right with each other," she soothed, taking Callie's hands in hers as her daughter stared doubtfully at her. "Sweetness...I think it was only a matter of time before you and Jude had your big fight. His actions lead to something that was important to you breaking, so I can appreciate why you would've been so upset with him." She peered at her daughter from above her glasses.

"What's going on in that head of yours, hm?" Stef asked when Callie huffed in frustration. Something was still unsaid and she was determined to uncover it. This had dragged on for far too long.

"I just can't believe he did that!" Callie vented. "I mean, I know I was mean to him...about the whole thing about my Mom not being his Mom...but he can't, like, not want her then change his mind. And he said he was sorry but, it's not all about the tape. I don't want him to have her if he doesn't even _want_ her," she said all in one go.

Stef drew in a measured breath, recognizing what was lurking beneath the surface of Callie and Jude's argument was baggage the size of an iceberg. "Whoa, slow down there, Cal." She waited for eye contact before continuing. "Mama and I were surprised to learn what had happened. But I'm not quite with you when you say Jude doesn't want your Mom. What makes you say that?"

"He...called you _Mom_," Callie said, her voice barely a whisper. Unexpected tears welled as she became afraid Stef would be angry with her for the admission.

In actuality, Stef was filled with confusion. She and Lena had reassured Callie and Jude repeatedly that they were allowed to call them whatever they were comfortable with, out of several options: first names, Mom or Mama, or some variation of those for her and Lena, respectively. They could try something out and change it up if it didn't feel right. Appreciating that each would need their own time to become comfortable with the designations for the new parent-child relationships, they were fine with the siblings referring to them differently as well. There was no pressure and they reminded Callie and Jude that they wouldn't take it personally if they weren't ready for Mom and Mama. For weeks, Jude had called Lena _Miss_ _Lena _and used Stef's first name. Callie stuck to their names for a long time before she began intermittently referring to them as Mom and Mama. It was heart-wrenching whenever she stopped, but it wasn't ever about them. It was Callie doing what she had to do to adjust at her own pace.

"Okay," Stef acknowledged, doing her best to follow along. "But honey... Jude has called me Mom for a few months now. You do, too," she gently reminded.

"Well, _yeah_...but not like _that_," Callie disputed, impatient with her own childish feelings. She fell silent as she reflected on the moment Jude had intruded on her opportunity to listen to her tape by herself. Her irritation with him had stemmed from how cavalier he was when he'd called Stef _Mom_ and how that had dredged up feelings from their appointment with Dr. Wiseman.

"Was it within a particular context? Something about the way he said it?" Stef cued. Trying to understand, she wracked her brain for what else had taken place that evening. Weeks later, all she could remember was that she'd sent Jude off with a stern reminder to apologize to Callie. Earlier that day, he'd spoken to her unkindly over an argument over his bike, which had left Lena more than a little tapped out.

The girl gripped her mug. "Yeah," she said after a while.

"Okay..." Stef still wasn't truly understanding but hoped she'd seeded an idea so Callie would take it from there.

"When we went to Dr. Wiseman's, he said he wanted to go live with our Dad when he got out."

Stef nodded at the truth that came easily and made so much sense. "I see. It felt like Jude was disrespecting your Mom by wanting to get to know your Dad, because your Dad was the reason she died," she said carefully, echoing the heated conversation that had taken place in their family session.

"Yeah. Then he called you Mom like it was nothing, no big deal," Callie said, trying to make sense of her mixed up feelings.

"But it is a big deal," Stef acknowledged. "It is a very big deal." She could see how Jude calling her Mom would appear as though he was replacing Colleen. How that would be like salt on a fresh wound after he'd inquired about returning to Donald. The situation was far more complicated than she had imagined, but the connection to Callie being protective over the cassettes her Mom had recorded for her was now glaringly obvious. "That's also why you felt he didn't deserve to hear your Mom."

Callie swept a hand across her runny nose. Her Mom was so right, and had put that better than how she ever could.

"Oh, my love. Come here." She wiped the tears that had begun to trickle down cherub cheeks, hating that there was this much hurt between her two children. "I know it's hard, to think about Jude wanting a connection with the person who hurt your Mom. How messy it is when that person is also your Dad," she said, nodding in unison with Callie. "But it's only natural that Jude would be curious about someone he has a biological tie to. He wants to know where he comes from, like most of us do, and deserves to have a choice to know your Dad. If possible." The qualifier was important because the decision wasn't up to him or Callie. It would be contingent upon whether she and Lena thought a relationship with Donald would be beneficial to the kids.

Given Jude's age when they'd essentially lost both their parents, his opinions and emotions relating to the situation were more factual than Callie's. He was sad he'd missed out on relationships with his Mom and Dad, and wished things were different. Callie had had those relationships and they'd been ripped away.

"None of that means he doesn't want your Mom. It doesn't mean he's pushing her out. For the same reason, him calling me Mom does not mean he's forgotten about her. Or is replacing her." It was slightly ironic that it was only last night that her daughter had declared it was okay for her to love three moms but was upset with her brother for doing exactly that. She thumbed away fresh tears that bloomed. "Jude _deserves_ the space to have his feelings. They don't need to make sense, but it's important that he can have them without being judged. Just like you do. You're not ready to share your tapes with Jude, even though you know that doing so doesn't leave less of your Mom for you," she emphasized. "You know that Callie, deep down I know you do. So while your choice doesn't necessarily make sense, it needs to be respected. That's why Mama and I have always protected your decision."

"I know, Momma," Callie agreed. Moms had never forced her to share.

"He feels terrible, Callie, if that helps at all," the mother consoled. "He accepts that he has to wait until you're ready and has promised when the time comes he'll treat them with respect."

"Wait. How'd you know?" Callie asked. For the first time, it registered that Moms had known about the broken cassette before she told them.

"Hm? He told on himself when I took him out for breakfast." Determined to keep details of that interaction private, Stef left it purposely vague.

"...were you mad?"

Recognizing the anxiety, Stef explained that Jude hadn't gotten into any trouble. "No, no. He was already beating himself up enough."

Callie frowned. It was weird—really weird—that Jude no longer went to her first. For a long time, she'd been the one to help and comfort him, so it was a change. Some days, she missed it. Other days, she was relieved not to have the responsibility.

"Are you two doing okay?" Stef asked. Ever since Jude had told her Callie was avoiding him, she had been keeping a close eye on them and she saw it as well.

"Yeah."

Stef regarded her child dubiously. Thirteen years of parenthood had taught her to be skeptical of that response. "Really? You haven't been going out of your way to stay away from him?"

Callie's face reddened. Her Mom knew her too well. "A little…but things are kinda changing between us and sometimes it's easier to not be around each other," she admitted.

"I get that," Stef said encouragingly. "Just make sure you check in with him here and there, alright?" She brushed a stray curl back from Callie's eyes. "He was pretty scared that Mama and I would love him less if he stirred up too much trouble. I don't want him to think the same with you," she said, giving the girl a knowing look.

Callie swallowed guilt at the reminder of the advice she'd drilled into her little brother for most of his life.

"You know that's not true, right?" Stef said. Now was not the time to berate Callie over this. Not when she was tired from their late night.

"But, _Mom_." Callie's tone indicated she was making less of a rebuttal than simply being honest. "I...I did say that to Jude, but before we knew about you and Mama. It's easy to forget. It's still new."

"Sweetness, I know. I know it's new." Hell, it was easy for _them _to forget that they'd only had Callie and Jude for four months. "But you have to _believe_—and _trust_ us when we say that you and Jude will always have our love. That nothing can take that away. Nothing." Even though they hadn't let Callie down yet, she needed convincing.

"My Mom used to say that when I was in trouble with her," Callie shared. She flashed a mischievous grin. "So I heard that a _lot_."

Stef chuckled. By now, she and Lena had heard many panic-inducing stories from Callie's childhood. "I bet you did. I can only imagine the mischief you must've cooked up that would have driven your poor Mama mad." Hoping that drawing upon the relationship with Colleen would help, Stef ventured a question. "How did you know that she loved you, even when she was upset with you?"

Callie knitted her brow, thinking hard. She didn't know how to explain—she just knew. Never once had she doubted her love. "I dunno," she said honestly. "She'd get mad and stuff but wasn't ever like mean about it. She'd yell sometimes when telling me off but after, we'd still hang out and joke around even though she had to punish me. Like she'd still hug me, and talk to me, or read to me…she'd still help me. I guess same deal with you and Mama, huh?"

Stef smiled. That was the conclusion she had wanted Callie would reach on her own. "_Exactly_," she said, her voice loaded with praise. "Same deal with us, Callie girl. Mama and I may be unhappy with you from time to time but you can always count on our love. There aren't conditions on it; we'd never take it away when you mess up and return it when you don't." They'd repeated themselves hoarse when it came to reminding Callie about unconditional love, but only recently did it feel like Callie was ready to hear them. "When we discipline you, it's out of love and concern to help you behave right." She was hard pressed to keep a straight face when Callie scowled. Clearly, they were still a ways from her being able to appreciate that sentiment. The thing was, most of the time when Callie earned a consequence, she would make it about them rather than owning up to the behaviour. She was convinced it came from a place of anger and an absence of love, rather than caring for her.

That day she'd overheard Callie telling Jude that he needed to keep being easy so Lena would keep wanting to love him was forever etched into her memory, driving her urgency to convey the message now. "So you behave for yourself because it's the right thing to do, not for anyone else. Not because you owe us. Not because you want our love. Got it?" she stated firmly.

"Yeah. I got it..." Callie acquiesced with the knowledge her mother wouldn't allow her to fight her on this. Even though it did feel like Moms were always power tripping.

"Good girl. If you ever, ever, _ever_ feel that our love is at stake, I need you to come to us so Mama and I can remind you." It was easier said than done, so she and Lena had been thinking of ways they could make opening the door to this sort of conversation easier.

"'Kay, Momma."

Silence fell over them as Stef concentrated on getting the last section of tape back in. Finally, it was ready. She tapped the button with the backwards double arrow on the cassette player. "Alright. No promises this will work but we certainly tried," she said, tempering expectations as she stuck in the cassette. "Go ahead, it shouldn't catch," she coaxed, seeing her daughter hesitate.

Callie paused before deciding to oblige and hit rewind.

"…it's probably going to skip a little when it gets to the section we patched," Stef warned, preparing Callie for the interruption. She was hopeful it would stay intact. Having Colleen's voice around not only kept her memory alive for Callie and Jude, but helped nurture her own connection to their biological mother. It inspired in her a deep sense of wanting to do her very best to raise these kids—the way she envisioned Colleen probably had.

"Hey, ah, Cal?" she asked noticing her daughter stare off into space. "We better think of converting these to digital files, kiddo. It'd be safer." Cassettes had a finite lifespan and she wanted Callie and Jude to have this keepsake for as long as possible. "It wouldn't take very long and that way you're not relying on an old machine." There was an extra iPod lying around they could put the files on so they were all in one spot.

She stopped, wondering if she should tell Callie what she had done. They'd been having a great morning and the last thing she wanted was to risk an argument that would ruin it. However, she also preferred not to hide things, either. On one of the many days she'd worked from home when Callie had first been discharged from hospital, she had, on a whim, recorded one of the tapes with her phone. Despite her challenges with technology, the resulting audio had been crisp and easily transferable to her laptop. Worried about the invasion of privacy, she'd gone back and forth on it, but in the end decided to go ahead and ask for forgiveness later. To assuage her guilt, Stef had left the tape running beside her phone in a separate room. Apart from checking on it a couple times, she hadn't touched it again until the copying had finished. "I did do a trial run with one of your tapes," she said. "I didn't listen to it," she added quickly when Callie stared at her with an expression that was strangely unreadable.

"You recorded my tapes?"

"One of them." Determined to be respectful of her daughter's belongings, Stef had grabbed the first one she saw without trying to locate the one that had Colleen's birthday message. She had intended to start with that but when she didn't spot it right off the bat, she figured it'd been stashed elsewhere.

"You had time to?"

Stef sighed. "What did we just talk about? I always have time for you."

"Oh...when?" Racking her brain, Callie wondered when her Mom would've even done that. She was already so busy and barely slept.

"When you were first home from the hospital and sleeping a lot. I was planning to ask but didn't know how, and...I'm sorry. I didn't listen, I promise. I heard parts of it when I checked to see if it worked, that was it."

"S'okay, Momma. You were doing a nice thing for me."

Stef smiled sadly at her girl. Never certain when they'd catch glimpse of Callie's sweet side, she cherished it whenever it emerged. After dealing with a resurgence in arguments and lipping off from her recently, the happy demeanour and understanding came as a welcome surprise. "Ready?" she said when the RCA automatically shut off, signalling they were at the beginning. This time, her daughter didn't hesitate to press play.

The volume dial cranked too high, Callie jumped as the sound came on louder than expected. In disbelief it still worked, she clamped a hand over her mouth, overcome with emotion at the familiar words. _Two of her Moms were around! _ One was reminding her of happier times they'd once had together. The other was in a panic to turn it down so they wouldn't wake the rest of the house. Everything felt _right_. Like they'd be okay.

"You're the best, Mom! _THANKS_!" she whooped as she jumped off the stool to tackle her Mom in a hug.

Stef gasped as the force of Callie hitting her left her winded. "Anytime, lovebug. Anytime," she emphasized, hoping this would be a valuable lesson to their daughter that she and Lena were there for her.

"How come?" Callie asked.

The woman laughed as her child held on, resting her head onto her shoulder and fitting perfectly as she had many times before. "How come anytime, or how come I'm the best?" she teased, though she understood Callie wasn't referring to either.

"No! Mom, you're _silly_!" Callie scolded, though the humour was mutual. "I mean, how come you thought to record them!"

"What, are you going to be a lawyer or something?" Stef asked, poking her daughter in the ribs and causing her to squeal. The days of pulling teeth to get anything out of Callie were now far and few in between. These days, she found herself more and more on the defence.

"I guess I was always a bit worried something like this would happen," she said once they were both calmer. "These things don't last forever." She paused, trying to articulate her thoughts. "I just didn't know how to bring it up. I didn't want to ask you about it in case the formatting didn't work out for some reason. Then it just sort of happened without it being planned. Really," she said, realizing how oddly similar she sounded to Callie when flustered. "I was procrastinating one day and went out to the garage to clean. And then I got thinking about decluttering, since you so cleverly pointed out, these things belong to people who are dead and worse, _old_." She waved at the cassette player. "Honestly, Callie. The things that come out of your sweet mouth sometimes."

She shook her head as her child laughed maniacally at being reminded of her ageist comment. "_Anyway_, it was a good time as any, because you were napping. After I copied it, I still wasn't sure how to tell you," Stef explained. Never had she imagined that a tape would be damaged so soon after Callie had gotten them back, and she regretted not having the idea to convert them sooner. "We could copy the rest if you're up for it. And of course you can still keep the original tapes. These would just be for back-up."

Callie was left speechless. She meant what she'd said earlier—that she'd been afraid to ask in case she was let down. But in hindsight, it should've been obvious that Moms were in her corner. They'd never let her down before and hadn't given her any reason to believe they would. Kinda like this. Her Mom really had thought of everything.

That knowledge didn't make things any less scary whenever she found herself needing to reach out. But the affirmation that Moms wouldn't turn their backs on her chipped away at the fear that she wasn't good enough or deserving enough of their time and attention, which always laid in wait.

"You're solid, Momma," she said, melting into her mother's arms once again.

"I like to think so too." Holding on tight, Stef smothered Callie with kisses as the child giggled and tried to squirm away. "I love you. To the moon and back."

"Love you to the moon and back two times."

* * *

**A/N: **Hope this turned out okay. I didn't like how this arc was left hanging, so it was nice to go back and tie up loose ends.

Thanks, too, to all of you who left story ideas. There were so many great ones and I can't wait to see how they're going to take shape. I love the idea of more Wyatt and Callie…that being said, a relationship between them will likely be platonic since writing any romance isn't my forte. Personally, I was always a little regretful the show didn't have Jesus and Callie closer than they were and hope to find a way to explore that sibling bond as well.


End file.
